"oh king, live forever..."

"Oh king,
live forever...
my God hath shut
the lion's mouth..."
- Daniel

O king...
dictator,
temptor,
monarch,
mayor,
governor...

live forever
live forever and prosper...

even though
the
lion...that I hold
within my heart,
is angry tonight...

my God,
even my God
will shut the
yawning,
gaping
lion's mouth of
criticism and complaint,
those not-really-laws that
seem to govern me,
and the false prophets that
breathe out,
threatening
to slaughter my peace...

those thoughts that sit in judgment and
condemn man...any man to a
den of
ravenous opinions...ready to swallow
my hopes whole...

my God will shut them up
cut them off
refuse them a platform,
deny them a voice...

and my God,
even my God,
will soothe the savagery of
envy,
hatred,
fear, and revenge...
turning my
tentatively whispered hopes 
into
a roar of compassion
a growling grace,
the sigh of salvation

He will come with a vengence
with
a recompence of Love...

powerful,
mighty,
overwhelming Love.

There is no fear in the
heart of a man
who loves the sound of lions,
a women who feeds them saucers of
cream and removes
thorns from tender paws.

there is  no more fear in the heart of
those who face animality and hate,
than a
mother feels when her
child growls with frustration
or thrashes in the night...

there is a daniel within us
that
patiently sits with lions
hands folded,
eyes closed,
perfect stillness
focused on the light
creeping over the horizon and
through the barred window...

waiting to
feel a heavy head drop to
her lap
and purr in its sleep...

lions will lie
down with
lamb-like thoughts...

He promised...